The three thugs stood over Atzi with vicious expressions. The crowd around them had distanced themselves. One of the thugs cracked his knuckles.

  "This bitch tried to attack me!" yelled the man without a pinky. "S-stab me!"

  Atzi quickly scrambled to her feet, intent to run away.

  "She's going for him again!" the scarred man shouted, and lunged at Atzi.

  They were shitty actors, but it didn't matter. Atzi turned tail and ran.

  She pushed her way through crowds of people. The men couldn't keep up with her speed. She just kept on running, turning down one street and then the next, blinking tears out of her eyes as she ran.

  The Serpent's temple was the only place left for her.

  -

  She entered the temple, no longer running nor crying. Instead her breathing was ragged, and there was a heavy weight in her chest.

  She approached a priestess at the front. The human woman had a mischievous grin on her face, and upturned eyes like she found everything amusing. Her robes were dark green with accents of pale yellow.

  "I-I'm a new priestess. Of the-" Atzi gasped "-Serpent. She said I c-could stay and h-hide here?"

  The priestess chuckled. "Of course. The Serpent provides sanctuary to her devoted. Welcome home." Then she clicked her tongue. "You're soaked through. Do you need a towel?"

  Atzi looked down at herself. She wasn't just wet, but her pants were soaked with mud from falling. "Yeah."

  The woman went to a side room, and came out shortly after with a towel. She tossed it to Atzi with a playful smirk.

  Atzi dried herself off. I'll die and Hemm and Marco will be alive again later. The weight on her heart lifted a bit. But I don't like this. I'm going to figure out this damn heist and I'm going to find what V's after and I'm going to take it for myself.

  It was the only thing that made sense to Atzi. The people were thugs, the kind of people V doubtlessly worked with. And it had happened right after she'd fucked up the job.

  So V had to be responsible.

  She didn't feel bad at all about having ruined them in her previous loops.

  "You seem troubled," the priestess said. "Do you wish to speak of it?"

  Atzi glanced at her. "Someone I like just got murdered. So... no, not really." She sadly realized that Hemm was the person she'd usually speak with. "...She's who I'd talk about this kind of stuff with."

  The priestess's eyes turned down. "I see. Then I shall leave you to your troubles." Then she walked off to attend to others in the temple.

  Atzi headed further in. Hiding out in the temple, well. It was always a backup plan. But it still stings. She'd been in the back before, so she had a rough idea of where to go. I'm going to learn those passphrases and I'm gonna figure out a way to steal the fire gems and I'm gonna eat them all.

  She imagined setting the ones who'd killed Hemm on fire. And... have Terra teach me how to ignite people who deserve it.

  Other priests and priestesses helped set her up in a small room. They were very quick about it. They also detailed to her what she'd be doing while she stayed - cleaning, cleaning, and more cleaning. There were other duties, but as a new priestess yet to be trained, she didn't qualify for them.

  Atzi groaned, but it wasn't like it was anything new to her. At least she had a bed and food. And a new outfit, the robes of a priestess.

  They had her start soon after, sweeping the main room of the temple where worshippers would come and pray.

  She worked alone as evening turned to night.

  As she swept around the Serpent's statues, someone knocked on the temple doors. Atzi realized they were locked at night. She went over and asked, "Who is it?"

  "P-please let us in, there are demons!" came a pleading woman's voice.

  Atzi gawped. "There's demons outside?"

  "Please!"

  Atzi clicked open the lock. A few small families of people rushed inside. Atzi quickly peeked outside, but there wasn't anything that looked like demons. She closed the door and locked it, before turning back to the panicked group. "What kind of demons?"

  "Little things with glowing eyes and pointy teeth," a mother with a young child said. "Attacking people. There aren't a lot, but we made sure to get to safety."

  "Good idea. You can uh, hide in here."

  Some priests and priestesses came out of the back. They asked the people questions, before looking over everyone to make sure they weren't wounded.

  A few of them went outside while Atzi stood around awkwardly.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  They returned a bit later. Atzi approached one of the priests and asked, "Do you know more about what's going on?"

  "No," the man replied. "Whatever demons they saw, we didn't find any. Which is good, as I doubt they're lying. A few other people were running into the other temples."

  Atzi scratched her scales. "Is there, uh, something I should do?"

  "You're new. No. You can head off to bed, we'll handle this."

  Atzi nodded, heading off to retire for the night.

  As she settled down to sleep, she wondered why demons were attacking the city. I need to figure out more about what's going on. Everything after the first few days differs so much…

  ===

  Come morning, the people who'd come to the temple for safety had left.

  Atzi overheard some other people that day talking about the attack. There weren't a lot of demons, but they were spread out all over the city. Some people were injured, and a rare few killed. Still, the guards and mages had dealt with them all. Nobody seemed to know where the demons had come from.

  Atzi looked outside, wondering if she should investigate more about the demons. Then she thought, If I do anything it'll go wrong and screw things up even more. She wondered if she had somehow caused it.

  What if getting Kurgi and Scabiel together made them go crazy and summon demons?

  It at least seemed safe outside for everyone else again. Less so for me, with V still wanting to kill me.

  Since nobody who came to the temple knew any more, there was no way for her to learn more. She certainly wasn't going outside just to die and have to do the same thing all over again.

  Atzi spent the next few days extremely bored, only cleaning, eating, and sleeping.

  I really need to get better at not making everyone wanna kill me. Can't do anything like this!

  She occupied herself by imagining the things she was going to say to Malus.

  "I wanna make her squirm…" she said to herself.

  "Make who squirm?" came a voice from inside her head. The mysterious goddess.

  "Malus! That's the entire reason why I'm still in this loop." She had, at times, considered asking the Serpent to eat her, just so Hemm would be alive again.

  But that would be a waste. And very painful.

  "How do you plan to do that?" The goddess asked, voice curious.

  "I'll just reveal everything I know," Atzi replied. She kept her voice down so as to not alert some worshippers nearby. "About the undead. That I know you. I'll probably die for it, but it'll be in front of everyone else. That has to hurt her."

  The goddess hummed. "I wonder what she had to do with it all."

  "She's obviously responsible, how could she not be!" Atzi said a little too loud. Someone glared at her. She coughed and went to a corner to sweep more. "You saw what she did to Regent, didn't you?"

  "It was strange," remarked the goddess. "I feel like there's still so much I don't know."

  "That's an understatement. But maybe I'll actually get to learn something before I die. Gotta focus on the positive." She imagined Hemm. "The… positive."

  "Is something wrong?"

  Atzi was silent. She would normally just open up if someone asked her what was wrong. Like Hemm. But even thinking about her hurt. She didn't want to acknowledge it. It didn't matter.

  Because all she had to do was die, and Hemm would be alive again.

  "No, it's fine," Atzi said.

  "Okay," said the goddess, and her voice faded out again.

  -

  On the night of the fifteenth, with the godscouncil the next day, there came rapid, frantic pounding on the door.

  Atzi dropped her broom and stared at the giant doors. Did something else happen?

  Seconds later, the prophet of the Serpent, Andrew, ran from the back and opened them.

  A flood of people spilled into the temple, shouting and screaming. The temple was suddenly packed.

  The prophet's expression turned dire. He ran through the now open doors and shouted outside, "This way! This way to safety!"

  Several more people entered the already packed temple. Atzi tried to look outside.

  She heard Andrew before she saw him. He chanted rapidly. Then she saw a flash of light covering a large space outside.

  She blinked, clearing the spots from her eyes. Only to be blinded by a second flash of light.

  Finally she saw several collapsed skeletons dotting the area just outside. Several more skeletons fought temple guards. Another flash of light, and those collapsed, too.

  Andrew ran back inside, several people following him, before slamming the doors shut and locking them.

  "Don't open them from here. No matter what," he said.

  Atzi nodded. She didn't need to be told twice.

  People sobbed and talked frantically amongst each other within the packed temple.

  "Why are there so many of them..." someone asked.

  This wasn't new to Atzi - she'd seen it happen before. Or at least the aftermath of it, back at the college.

  Atzi decided to head into the back of the temple, seeking out the Serpent. She hadn't bothered to see her again before then, as the others had warned her that she'd punish anyone who interrupted her. Atzi thought this was important enough not to count.

  She found one of the Serpent's bodies busy snorting white powder off the feasting table. The goddess looked up at Atzi, eyes unfocused. "You have come to find me, little lizard?"

  Atzi nodded. "You heard the commotion outside, right? I don't know exactly how but... well, it's a day before the bigger one. It's gotta be Malus causing that."

  The Serpent chuckled. "And what a terrible thing for her to do. She surely must be punished." Then she wagged a clawed finger. "I suggest finding a way to sleep tonight, regardless of the noise. The meeting is tomorrow."

  "Are you going to do anything about the skeletons?" Atzi asked.

  "No, why should I? It'll be fine." The Serpent waved a dismissive claw. "You should focus on your big speech."

  Atzi didn't like to think about the attack, so she took the Serpent's advice. "Yeah... yeah!" Atzi was suddenly energized to teach Malus a lesson. "I'm gonna spill it all at the council. Let's see how she tries to wriggle out of this."

  Atzi could hear the Serpent laughing as she went off to sleep.

  ===

  Come morning, Atzi's burst of energy had worn out. She was a lot more nervous. But the spite remained. I'm gonna see what that bitch has to say for herself.

  The Serpent had her prophet fetch her, and Atzi left the temple with them both. The district was being cleaned of bones and corpses by the guards and a few workers. There was nobody else in the streets.

  Atzi remembered that the last time this had happened, she'd been told she couldn't go outside. If she wasn't beside a god, she surely would not be allowed out now, either.

  They went to the main temple, in the center of the district, around which all the other, lesser temples - even the Saintess's temple - were arranged. In front of the entrance were two temple guards in flashy, ornate armor, standing at attention on either side. They each held halberds, and wore swords at their hips. When the Serpent approached, they nodded to each other, and opened the doors.

  Accompanied by the Serpent and her prophet, Atzi stepped across the threshold and into the temple.

  here!